Feb. 1 (UPI) — The Pittsburgh Penguins have traded forwards Derick Brassard and Riley Sheahan to the Florida Panthers in a blockbuster deal that also included three draft picks, according to NHL.com.
In return, the Penguins will receive forwards Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann. Nashville also acquired Pittsburgh’s second-round pick and two fourth-rounders in the June draft.
Brassard, 31, was acquired from the Ottawa Senators before last season’s trade deadline and has struggled on the Penguins’ third line. He has compiled nine goals and 15 points in 40 games.
The 6-foot-6, 215-pound Bjugstad is considered the prize of the deal for the Penguins. Bjugstad, 26, tallied five goals and 12 points in 32 games with the Panthers.
McCann, 22, has eight goals and 18 points in 46 games.
While the four players’ salaries cancel each other out, the contracts of Brassard ($ 3 million) and Sheahan ($ 2.1 million) will come off the Panthers’ books at the end of the season, when the new acquisitions become free agents.